(The Warfare of Worship)
After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang: “Give thanks to the LORD; his faithful love endures forever!” (2 Chronicles 20:21 NLT)
By Fr. Chris Lee OFR
In case you haven’t figured it out yet, we Christians have a real enemy! Satan is constantly attacking us spiritually, emotionally, and even sometimes physically. He is always trying to sow the seeds of division, confusion, and doubt. His attacks can be sudden, terrifying, and brutal. What can we Christians do about this maniacal bully? We can fight back! One of the most powerful weapons we have is WORSHIP.
In 2 Chronicles 21 we learn that King Jehoshaphat (King of Judah) was being attacked by a tremendous army made up of Israel’s most fearsome enemies. Jehoshaphat’s immediate response was to turn to the Lord. He and all of Judah began praying, seeking, and worshiping God. Both he and Judah remembered all that God had done in the past, and how He was faithful to defend them against their cruelest enemies. Something amazing happened during this worship service. God responded to their call and confirmed His presence on the battlefield. When the time came to engage the enemy, Jehoshaphat and Judah began praising, adoring, and worshiping The Lord. While they worshiped, the enemy fell into utter confusion and destroyed themselves. Worshiping God gave Judah the victory!
When we are under the threat of spiritual attack, we must remember to turn to the Lord for help. When we begin praying, seeking, and worshiping God, we are using the weapon of worship against our enemy. While worshipping, we can recall all the things God has done in the past, and how He has delivered us from our cruelest enemies. We can recall His Word that He is with us always, even to the end of the age. (Matthew 28:20) We can take our position on the battlefield with confidence, knowing that our worship confuses our enemy, and gives us the victory. My friends, this is how we fight our battles.
Digging Deeper:
- Can you identify an area of your life that the enemy is attacking you?
- What prayers, songs, Bible verses can you use to help worship your way to victory?